National Philharmonic
The Music Center at Strathmore
5301 Tuckerman Lane
North Bethesda, MD 20852-3385

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Chorale Artistic Director Stan Engebretson

Stan Engebretson has served as the Artistic Director of the National Philharmonic Chorale since its inception. In addition to his work leading the Chorale in Masterworks ranging in size from Handel’s Messiah to Berlioz’ Requiem at The Music Center at Strathmore, Engebretson has appeared on concert stages throughout the United States and in Europe, Asia, and Australia. He has studied with the great masters of choral music, including Robert Shaw, Gregg Smith, Richard Westenburg, Roger Wagner and Eric Ericson, Conductor Emeritus of the world-renowned Swedish Radio Choir in Stockholm, Sweden.

A native of North Dakota, Engebretson grew up in a musical environment, receiving his early training singing in the Scandinavian choral tradition. He earned Bachelor’s and Master's degrees in Piano and Voice from the University of North Dakota, and then went on for his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting from Stanford University. He has held faculty positions within the University of Texas system and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, he served as the Artistic Director of the Midland-Odessa Symphony Chorale and was the Associate Conductor of the Minnesota Chorale.

In Washington, DC since 1990, Dr. Engebretson also is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at George Mason University, and is the Director of Music at the historic New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. From 1993-2003, he was the Artistic Director of the predecessor to the National Philharmonic Chorale, the Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra, and their semi-professional smaller ensemble, the National Chamber Singers. In 2009 he served as a Fulbright Scholar to Iceland. Since 1992 until the present, Engebretson has lectured for the Smithsonian Institution during summer tours including the Bach Festival in Carmel, CA; the Aspen Music Festival in Aspen, CO; and the Spoleto-USA Festival in Charleston, SC. Abroad in recent seasons he performed in workshops such as the Europa Cantat and AMJ (Arbeitskreis Musik in der Jugend) events, plus others in Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Russia, Lithuania, Iceland, Switzerland, China, Korea, and Australia.